Community garden to aid area food pantries

CHARLESTOWN – In an effort to provide another community-based activity and provide produce to area food pantries, Richmond resident Christopher Hacunda is installing a vegetable garden inside Ninigret Park.

Hacunda is embarking on the project as part of his goal to become an Eagle Scout as he is a life scout in Troop 1 Richmond. His plan is to erect the community garden behind the Charlestown Community Center in Ninigret Park and he's calling it the “Community Garden: A Sustainable Hunger Solution.”

He explained the concept of the garden at the Town Council meeting on April 20, during which he said it will provide produce that can be distributed to food pantries throughout Washington County. In particular, he is looking to donate food to Charlestown's Rhode Island Center for Assisting those in Need, or RICAN, which is located at 2075 Matunuck Schoolhouse Road.

The fresh vegetables will also be used in the community center's lunch and Meals on Wheels programs, according to Patty Marshall, secretary of the Parks and Recreation Department.

Hacunda said he also hopes that the garden will bring new interest and attention to the community center.

“The idea to is to get a community run and maintained garden,” he explained, adding that it will be up to the people to decide what is grown there and how it will be distributed.

In going forward, Hacunda said he would like to tap into the state''s volunteer resources such as its various youth programs and Boy Scouts of America along with anyone interested in gardening. He's also asking local businesses for their continued support.